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A Deep Dive into Hungarian Wine (#WinePW)

 

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This month I’m hosting the Wine Paired Weekend group’s exploration of underrated European wine regions. You can read my invitation here. There are so many unexplored wine regions in Europe-even within the big three countries of France, Italy, and Spain so I asked the group to go out and find a region new to them or that they think should be given a little more love. 

Whether you’ve written a post for the theme or not, join the #WinePW conversation on Saturday, April 10 at 11 am EST / 8 am CST by following the hashtag on Twitter. And don’t forget to check out what the rest of the group discovered!

• Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla posts From the Same Latitude as Other Pinot Noir Powerhouses: The 2017 Macedon Pinot Noir Matches Two Meaty Dinners
• Jeff at Food, Wine, Click! looks at Under the Radar in Croatia with Franc Arman Teran
• Gwendolyn from Wine Predator looks at 3 Wines from Sicily’s Etna Volcano Paired with Pork Sugo #WinePW
• Kat from The Corkscrew Concierge takes us Beyond Wine – Kosovo’s Stone Castle Vineyards Provides Pride, Hope & Jobs
• Linda at My Full Wine Glass features Dry or dryish, Hungarian Furmint is having a moment
• Nicole at Somm’s Table explores Stranger Grapes with Eric Danch of Danch & Granger Selections
• Susannah from Avvinare shares Slovenia Wines from Brda, Not to Be Missed
• Terri from Our Good Life looks at Ancient Gamza in 2021: Best Wine with Burgers from Eastern Europe
• Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm has Georgia On My Mind
• Andrea from the Quirky Cork takes a Deep Dive into Hungarian Wine

Hungry for Hungary!

Despite practically living on my Turkish wines soapbox, I decided to give that a rest for today and talk about wines from one of my favorite (and I think massively under the radar) wine countries: Hungary. While the country has been producing award-winning and famous wine for centuries (see more on that below!) I still find that many people shy away from it. Perhaps because the wine they’re most famous for is sweet (and people do love to hate on sweet wine)? Or maybe it’s the American fear of the umlaut, and Hungarian does have a lot of umlauts and some pretty scary consonant combinations. The wine here is so fantastic though and should be enjoyed more widely than by the few wine enthusiasts willing to tackle the pronunciation of some of these grapes!

A brief wine history

Wine has been part of Hungary and Hungarian culture long before the country came into being. The Romans brought vines to Pannonia, and by the 5th century AD, there are records of extensive vineyards in what is now Hungary. They didn’t even let the Ottoman invasion and occupation stop them from making wine. Hungary’s famous Tokaji aszú gets a documented mention in 1571, and it was famously christened by Louis XIV of France as “Vinum Regum, Rex Vinorum” – Wine of Kings, King of Wines.

Germanic grapes started influencing Hungarian winemaking after the territory came under Austrian rule in 1699. The Germanic love of order was also felt here as Hungary put into place the first wine classification system in 1730. The system was specifically for Tokaj, and classified vineyards based on soil, aspect, and propensity to noble rot.

Phylloxera hit Hungary in 1882 followed not too long after by the Soviet Union occupation. Since gaining independence in 1989, the country has renewed its interest in winemaking and quality wines, many of which come from native grapes, are on the rise.

Climate and grapes

Hungary enjoys a largely continental climate. Protected from more extreme weather by the Carpathian mountain range and the many rovers and lakes help moderate temperatures. Much of the country has mild winters and long hot summers that contribute to an extended growth season. Plains, hills, and mountains contain diverse soils such as basalt, tufa, chalk, dolomite, red sandstone, sands, etc.

A wide variety of grapes grow in Hungary. Native grapes include: Furmint, Hárslevelű, Kéknyelű, Juhfark, Irsai Olivér, Cserszegi Fűszeres, Királyleányka, and Leányka. Traditional grapes, largely originating in Central Europe rank high in importance as well: Kékfrankos, Zweigelt, Kékoportó, Kadarka, and Olaszrizling. Making up the rest of vineyard plantings are international grapes such as: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, and Tramini.

And speaking of hungry! I paired my three wines with a nouveau Hungarian feast including: cheese board; mozzarella prosciutto pear salad; pâté; mocskos tészta, and szalonna.

Hungarian Wine Regions

Hungary has 37 wine regions. 31 fall under the PDO designation and the other six  are PGIs.

Balaton PGI

• Balatonmelléki PGI
• Badascony PDO (volcanic)
• Balatonboglár PDO (bulk sparkling & still wines)
• Balatonfüred-Csopak PDO (Olaszrizling)
• Balaton-felvidék PDO
• Tihany PDO (Hungary’s smallest region, basalt tufa)
• Káli PDO (Balaton sub-zone)
• Zala PDO
• Nagy Somló PDO (volcanic)
• Somló PDO (Somló sub-region consisting of only one of the three Nagy Somló hills)

Felső-Magyarország PGI

• Debrői Hárslevelű PDO (Eger PDO sub-region, only for Hárslevelű)
• Bükk PDO
• Mátra PDO (second largest wine region)
• Eger PDO (home of Bull’s Blood)

Zemplén PGI

• Tokaj PDO (oldest historical wine region)

Duna-Tisza Közé PGI

• Duna PDO
• Csongrád PDO
• Hajos-Baja PDO
• Kunság PDO (largest region)
• Izsáki Arany Sárfehér (Kunság sub-region, only for Arany Sárfehér grape)
• Monor PDO (Kunság sub-region)
• Soltvadkerti Ezerjó PDO (Kunság sub-region, only for white and sparkling made from Ezerjó)

Dunántúl PGI

• Pannon PDO
• Pécs PDO
• Szekszárd PDO (the only other region allowed to produce Bull’s Blood)
• Tolna PDO
• Villány PDO (premium red wine region)
• Etyek-Buda PDO (known for sparkling wines)
• Neszmély PDO
• Mór PDO
• Pannonhalma PDO
• Sopron PDO (specializes in Kékfrankos)

Kikelet Tokaj Sparkling Brut, 2015

Because I have covered Tokaj as a region before (which you can read about here), I won’t get into the nitty gritty about the region with these two wines. Let’s dive right in then!

We began with a sparkling wine, or pezsgő as it’s called in Hungarian. Located in Tokaj, Kikelet is run by wife and husband team Stéphanie and Zsolt Berecz. Their vineyards, planted half with Furmint and half with Hárslevelű, sit on volcanic soils covered with a shallow layer of loess. While not certified, they farm organically because they want to work with nature and produce wines that express each vintage’s character. Kikelet produces sparkling, dry, and sweet white wines.

The Tokaj Sparkling Brut was first produced in 2013. Made via the traditional method, the blend contains 70% Hárslevelű and 30% Furmint. Medium gold on the pour with discreet bubbles. Bready aromas rose from the glass but soon revealed golden apples, quince, honey, and acacia flowers. Soft mousse lent a medium body to the 12% abv and high acidity. Mineral-led on the palate with honeyed fruit and sage flavors. Very lovely.

Did not pair very well at all with the mozzarella prosciutto pear salad. Paired very well with the prosciutto and pear actually but it hated the mozzarella. The wine loved the pâté served with quince compote and dried cranberry and rosemary sourdough crackers though!

Szepsy Pince Hasznos Furmint, 2016

From István Szepsy, comes this terroir series Furmint. The Sezepsy family has produced wined in Tokaj since the 1500s so he surly knows what he’s doing. The family’s wine, Szepsy Lasko Mati, in 1631, is regarded as the first wine in the aszú style as we know it now. Today, István Szepsy is regarded as one of the region’s most eminent winemakers.

The winery has 52 hectares  split across 22 vineyards in six of Tokaj’s municipalities. Among these different parcels, Szepsy has identified over 300 clonal variants of Furmint. The grapes for this particular wine, the Hasznos Furmit, grow in the tuff and quartz soils on a gentle slopes in the winery’s Hasznos vineyards in Tállya, Tokaj, this 100% Furmint wine comes from 50+ year old vines. The wine fermented in barrels with native yeast then aged for about nine months in 400-500 liter, light-toast, Zemplén oak barrels.

Medium gold on the pour the wine exuded and earthy perfume chased by fruit. Grapefruit, grapefruit peel, smoke, mineral, and saffron combined in the nose. Sipping revealed flavors of citrus, quince, and saffron water along with high, mouthwatering acidity, and a medium plus body with 14% abv.

On the cheese board we had locally produced cheddar, Kars Gravyer, Masadam, an ashy goat cheese pyramid, goat milk gouda, and a Cabochon d’Anjou alongside an acacia honey mixed with Tokaj wine. This wine was a much better match than the sparkling with the cheeses, especially the creamy Cabochon and both the goat milk cheeses. Yufka chips dipped in the honey created a gorgeous salty-sweet pairing with the wine which also paired well with the pâté and quince compote.

Thummerer Pincészet Egrí Bikavér Superior, 2013

I didn’t get to visit Eger on my last trip but have to talk about Hungary’s flagship red wine. If for no other reason than for the backstory of how it got its name: Bull’s Blood. As I’ve written about Bikavér pretty recently I won’t go into the specifics of the winemaking. However, the story is a delight and must be trotted out for this post. Legend says that during Suleiman the Magnificent’s 1552 invasion, the small group of soldiers left at the Eger Castle, under Ottoman siege, received delicious food and wine to bolster their courage. A rumor circulated among the Ottoman soldiers that bull’s blood was added to the Hungarian soldiers’ wine to give them super human strength. They got scared and ran away.

That’s quite the wine. Did Thummerer’s live up to that reputation? Thummerer Pincészet is a family-run winery in Eger founded in 1984. Going from a mere six hectares to 100, the entire family, now three generations, is involved at this winery. 80% of their production is black grapes, much of which goes into their three Bikavér wines spanning the Classicus, Superior, and Grand Superior categories.

The 2013 Bikavér Superior blend contained Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Kékfrankos, Merlot, and Syrah. It aged in Hungarian oak (because why wouldn’t you use Hungarian oak here?!) for 18 months with additional bottle ageing. In the glass the wine glowed a medium intense ruby. Aromas of sour cherry and plum balanced well with fresh oregano, bay leaf, and leather. A tannic bite on the attack dissipated quickly, leaving behind purple plum, oregano, and leather flavors. Medium acidity and body with 14% abv and persistent flavors that lasted through a medium long finish.

I paired this wine with two Hungarian dishes: mocskos tészta and szalonna. Mocskos tészta, or “dirty noodles” combines wide noodles with plum jam and crispy bacon. This went pretty well with the wine especially with the matching fruit flavors. Szalonna is my new favorite thing. This is a campfire treat in Hungary apparently. The short of it is pork fat dripped onto bread and topped with thinly sliced red onions. We didn’t have a campfire handy so we tried to get creative by putting it in the oven which sort of worked. It might not have looked right but we got the flavors and the wine loved it.

I’ve been to Hungary a few times now and was very sad to have to cancel a trip last year especially as this is probably my favorite white wine country. During my last visit in 2019 I visited a few wine regions and did some great tastings with Taste Hungary. I highly recommend them if you’re considering Hungary as a wine destination! If you don’t want to wait for a visit though, you can order online from their shop and they ship throughout the EU and to the US! I also highly recommend Taste Hungary’s blog if you want more information about Hungarian wine.